Linden Labs 'Skilled Gaming' restrictions & Medieval Games & Tournaments
- DDAcademy
- Jul 14, 2014
- 2 min read
NEW SKILLED GAMING RESTRICTIONS FROM LINDEN LABS
On July 9th, Linden Labs announced a new ‘Skilled Gaming’ policy that takes affect August 1, 2014 (Deadline moved to September 1, 2014) This represents a fundamental shift in the practice of prize money payouts in Medieval tournaments such as Jousting. What does Linden Lab consider a skill game? According to the Linden Labs official FAQ Wiki:
“Skill Game” refers to any game: 1) whose outcome is determined by skill and is not contingent, in whole or in material part, upon chance; 2) requires or permits the payment of Linden Dollars to play; 3) provides a payout in Linden Dollars; and 4) is legally authorized by applicable United States and international law. Read all FAQ answers here: http://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Linden_Lab_Official:Second_Life_Skill_Gaming_FAQ Restrictions to the Game of Jousting By its basic definition, these restrictions appear to apply to any skill based medieval tournament using jousting, archery or sword melee tournament score boards or equipment that permit payment, and provide payout in linden dollars. Regulation of Skilled Gaming Second Life will continue to allow residents to participate in skilled gaming as long as it is restricted to a specific licensed region, operator and approved equipment. Generally, this policy requires: 1) Skill games that offer Linden Dollar payouts will be allowed in Skill Gaming Regions only. 2) Only operators approved by Linden Lab will be allowed to run skill games that offer Linden Dollar payouts on Skill Gaming Regions. 3) Creators of skill games that wish to make them available in Second Life may do so only through Skill Gaming Regions and only after the games have been approved by Linden Lab. 4) Access to Skill Gaming Regions will be restricted to Second Life users who are of sufficient age and are located in a jurisdiction that Linden Lab permits for this kind of online gaming activity. For complete details, refer to Linden Lab announcement 7/9/2014 @: http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Featured-News/Coming-Soon-Skill-Gaming-in-Second-Life/ba-p/2771080 Skilled gaming prohibited to some residents
According to the Linden Lab Wiki, residents of the following states may not participate in Skill Gaming in Second Life: Arizona. Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, South Carolina, South Dakota and Tennessee. This restriction may apply to some countries.
Compliant Scoreboards for Medieval Tournaments
These changes are effective as of August 1, 2014, and applications for approved creators and approved operators are now being accepted by Linden Labs.
Barring further intepretation from Linden Labs regarding Medieval skilled gaming, manufactures of gaming equipment must be approved, and operators licensensed to use equipment permitting payment and payout.
Currently, scoreboards designed for jousting, available from Armor Stall (TAS), and Medieval Designs do not include payment features and woud comply with the new guidelines. They also use fewer prims and can be less expensive and simpler to operate then boards which are currently not compliant.
